The invention relates to a continuous casting plate mold comprising an oscillating lifting table and parallel first side walls and second side walls capable of being clamped between the first side walls by a clamping means, which side walls are supported directly on the lifting table on both sides, i.e., without interposition of a water box.
From DE-A-32 35 673 a continuous casting plate mold is known, with which parallel first side walls and second side walls capable of being clamped between these first side walls by a clamping means are supported on a water box, the water box, in turn, being fastened to a lifting table. The first and second side walls each are fastened or supported directly on the water box in a manner that all of the side walls individually must be detached from the water box and removed from the same when removing these side walls.
A continuous casting mold without water box does have slightly larger and more stable side walls than a comparable mold incorporating a water box, yet its advantages predominate, which are to be seen in that its structure is more compact and simple because of the presence of fewer structural parts, that the overall structural weight and hence its production costs are substantially lower, that the accessibility for maintenance and adjustment works is enhanced and that a mold replacement is more simple and quick to carry out.
A continuous casting plate mold without water box of the initially defined kind to be used for casting strands having slab format is known from EP-B-0 233 796. With this known continuous casting mold, the two first side walls, which are designed as broad side walls, are mounted directly on a frame-shaped lifting table capable of being set in vertical lifting and lowering movements by means of an oscillation drive. The second side walls inserted between the broad side walls, which are designed as narrow side walls, each are supported on the lifting table via a special device that serves to adjust the position of the narrow side walls. Such devices are pivotably fastened to the lifting table in a manner that they can be brought into a position outside of the frame-shaped lifting table as seen from above, for the purpose of clearing the opening of the lifting table.
This construction involves the disadvantage that the side walls of the plate mold cannot readily be removed from the lifting table and replaced with new ones. For, with this known solution each of the broad side walls and each of the narrow side walls must be lifted off the lifting table separately. This is cumbersome and requires relatively much time.
With the mold known from EP-B-0 233 796, the broad side walls are displaceable relative to the lifting table for the purpose of clamping the narrow side walls, to which end displacement means especially arranged on the lifting table are provided. In order to be able to clear the lifting table completely, one is forced to remove these displacement means also separately. In doing so, it is disadvantageous that the clamping and straddling forces as well as the forces applied in format adjusting are transmitted onto the lifting table. This involves the danger of the lifting table being deformed and, thus, of the mold being expanded. Hence, an expensive and sturdy lifting table is required. Another disadvantage is to be seen in that none of the broad side walls serves as a fixed side, but that both of the broad side walls must be adjusted relative to the narrow side walls. If the strand casting format is to be altered in terms of thickness, both of the broad side walls will have to assume new positions relative to the lifting table and hence also new positions relative to the strand guide provided below the lifting table. This implies cumbersome adjustment works.
From EP-A-0 417 504 also a continuous casting mold without water box is known, with which a device for adjusting the narrow side walls likewise is arranged on the lifting table, i.e., is rigidly fastened thereto. The broad side walls are supported on this device and, thus, are mounted on the lifting table not directly, but by this device being interposed. The two broad side walls are adjustable relative to the narrow side walls in a manner that also this construction does not offer any possibility to configure one of the broad side walls as a fixed side.